yk

Looking at prices for Eurostar Paris-London on both the UK & US websites.
For certain trains, I got £60 r/t on UK webiste, and got $94 r/t on US website.

However, for the trains that fit my schedule, the price is still £60 r/t on UK website, but $120 r/t on US website.

Has anyone from the US bought Eurostar tickets via the UK website? Should I anticipate any problems (ie, do they ask for a UK address or a UK-issued credit card?)

aliska

We bought 4 Eurostar tickets from Paris to London that we used the day after Xmas. We had absolutely no problems. Look at different options. Believe it or not, it was cheaper for us to buy round trip one day tickets and simply throw away the return than advertised one way fares. I requested the tickets be mailed to us and about a week after purchase I received the tickets in the mail. Of course, I also had printed the order, just in case I ran into problems. We bought second class tickets, which were just lovely. There were four of us. We traveled around lunch time, and I was able to reserve the seats. I think this was called a banquette, it was a small table in the middle and bench seats (very comfortable) on either side. By the time we finished our picnic lunch, we were in London. Don't worry, but compare all the prices, because they vary tremendously.

yk

Nevermind.

I found the answer when I started reading the Paris Superthread. For future reference, it appears that the UK website allows one to put a US address on the purchase form and they will mail the tix to US address without extra charge.

111op

Actually it's not necessary to have the tickets mailed to you. There're ticket machines from where you can print the tickets out.

If I remember right, when I used them in July 04, I didn't have the usual credit card problems I might have (some European machines can't read the US cards because they lack a chip or something). I think that that was because the reservation was identified by a confirmation number issued to you when you book. Of course, my real problem was that I was printing out my tickets when my scheduled train was leaving. As you probably know, Eurostar checkin closes 10 (?) minutes before departure. Basically there's an absolute cutoff, after when no one can pass through the gates (I think). The advice is to get there half an hour early, but I think that one can tarry a bit and still make it. But it's not possible to wait until the absolute last minute.

Of course there's a chance the machines are broken, and you'll then have to wait in line, and the line can be long.

Anyway, since the pound/dollar conversion is around 2 now, I guess it doesn't make much of a difference.

111op

And when I bought the tickets, I bought it off the UK site as, at that time, Eurostar was having the apparent well-known problem where tickets on the UK site were cheaper than on the US site (even when the exchange rate was taken into account).

So, I don't think that you'll need to worry about buying off the UK site if the price is better.

artsfan

Would someone please provide the URL of the UK site?

PalQ

with a very few exceptions prices in the US for the same tickets are currently significantly cheaper than those on the UK web site - i've checked RailEurope and the site and this is true almost always, so save money by buying here, or at least checking and not blindly thinking the UK site has cheaper fares. RailEurope fares have not gone up in over a year, whilst the dollar has plunged against the pound, make these tickets now cheaper. Just chekc and you'll find out - a few exceptions like in original post but not many. For US info I'd call Budget Europe, who are real experts in Eurostar and don't charge RailEurope's $15 mailing fee (800-441-9413) cheapest tickets must be booked in advance, such as the $90 round trip (i don't see anything that close on Eurostar sight, but things can change quickly) - limited number of seats at this price. Can book up to 6 months in advance. Cheapest tickets non-refundable non-changeable. Youth fare, under 26 at $45 one way an absolute bargain.

111op

artsfan, for the UK website, go to eurostar.com and say that you live in the UK.

The preferences are set and remembered, so if you've used this site before and want to change, you'll have to delete cookies and the files temporarily cached (in IE, go to Tools -> Internet Options).

artsfan

Thanks,111op.

111op

No problem. One potential issue -- as you probably know -- when you reset cookies and delete your cached files, you lose all your preferences you've set for other websites. So that can be a pain.

yk

Author: yk
Date: 01/29/2005, 04:18 pm
Message: I want to post my experience with Eurostar.com. I just spend about 45 mins trying to find out the most economical way to book my tickets.

I checked both UK & US websites (which is a nuisance as I have to delete my cookies in order to do so).

For the outbound Paris-London:
UK website - £30 pp
US website - $60 pp

For the inbound London-Paris:
UK website - £30 pp
US website - $75 pp

They are the exact same trains.
With the current exchange rate, 1 GBP = 1.88856 USD
£60 = $113

Interestingly, I went to RailEurope.com website and check their prices. There are many different Leisure fares, with the cheapest Leisure fare (#5) being $45 one-way (based on return).

However, for my outbound train, I only qualify for Leisure fare #4, which is $60 one-way.
For my inbound train, I will qualify for Leisure fare #5.
Therefore, I assume I can get the r/t ticket for $60 + $45 = $105

HOWEVER, the rules for all the Leisure fares state:
< Return ticket must be purchased, in the same fare category. >
Therefore, I don't think I can travel outbound on a Leisure fare #4 ($60) and return inbound on Leisure fare #5 ($45).

It seems to me that when I try to check out on the RailEurope website, there is no indication that the above combo (Leisure 4 + Leisure 5) is not allowed. I wonder if anyone has tried that? I doubt someone will really check my tickets that closely, but in the end I decided not to "cheat", and therefore I bought my tickets from Eurostar.com UK website for £60.

[I guess one can argue that I am still "cheating" by buying my tickets on the UK website even though I live in the US.]

PalQ

for the answer to mixing fare categories thru Rail Europe i believe that it's allowed as long as it's a round trip, anyway i'd call Budget Europe (800-441-2387) - they will give you a definitive answer - they book hundreds of Eurostars a year and really know everything. I think this has come up with me before and they said yes.